Useful Trash

One man's trash is another man's treasure. 
English Proverb

As I passed the guards this week on my early morning walk, I noticed the huge smiles on their faces.  "Oh, thank you Mum!  Thank you for the plastics!"  I had no idea what they were talking about until one of them said, "Our children now have lunchboxes."   Then it occurred to me.  Sometimes I will place bags of washed recyclables on our back porch for the workers on our compound.  So as I walked away, I thanked the Lord for plastic ice cream containers, which are now prized by others as lunchboxes.

Paul and Joseph, Two of Our Guards at Shimalavandu

The truth is that I hate to waste anything.  For example, knowing that I love yogurt, Ken frequently scours the markets for my favorite treat.  Some months I have to go without, but when he does find some, I make the most of it.  After getting as much as I can with a spoon, I'll use my fingers to scoop out the last drop from every container.  But not just to eat.  I've found that a small amount works wonders as a cleanser or as a face mask (with honey -- Yum!).  And when I can only get an expired container, I just comb the yogurt into my hair as a conditioner.  The only danger there, of course, is that I have to make sure I don't go to the office with hair that smells like sour milk!

I always thought I was pretty good at recycling, but our Martha's Boys (street boys) really put me to shame.  Kakamega has no trash service, which means that all rubbish is simply thrown into a pile and burned.  So we were skeptical when the boys planted seeds a few months ago on the THQ trash heap in order to grow food.  But now their plants are thriving.  One boy recently said to our Social Services Secretary, "See Mama Major, it 's just like us.  From garbage, good things can grow."

In my devotions, the Lord brought James 1:2-4 to my attention:

Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any kind come your way,
consider it an opportunity for great joy.  For you know that when your faith is tested,
your endurance has a chance to grow.
So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed,
you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.  

Perhaps that's something I've been wasting.  When God allows a trial to enter my life, He surely has a purpose for it.  So instead of wasting the opportunity, I should squeeze out of that situation every ounce of spiritual growth that I can.

There's a blessing in every trial, and I am determined not to waste a single one.